Instagram is Killing My Blog

 Who hasn’t heard of Instagram? Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock there was no escaping the news snippets about Instagram around a month or so ago. Even my 60+ year old mom, who’s social media participation is below average, is very much aware of Instagram.

 

For those not in the know Instagram is a free photo sharing application on the iPhone. In April 2012, it has also become available on the Android platform via Google Play. Think Facebook but limited to photos. Now, if you don’t know Facebook then you have a problem.

Instagram describes itself as ‘a fast, beautiful and fun way to share your photos with friends and family.’ Couldn’t argue that!  Fast, yes! It’s almost instantaneous! Beautiful and fun, a big yes! The app provides filters that transform ordinary looking photos to something that looks and feels (almost) spectacular. Easy sharing to family and friends, yes!  I’ve even extended my audience to include strangers. It also allows the user to simultaneously upload the photos on Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr.

Just last month Facebook acquired Instagram for a whopping $1 billion (that’s why they were in the news). The forward thinking company obviously see a lot of value in it. Not bad for an app that’s only been out for less than two years. Not bad at all. But wait, there’s more, it now boasts over 30 million registered users (and counting).

Despite the title, I do not harbour negative feelings toward Instagram, in fact, quite the opposite. I love it! I love it so much it is killing my blog. What do I mean by that? I have been using Instagram as a substitute to my blog. It has become the micro version of my regular blog. The attraction? Less words but big impact. In fact, I have a bigger following on Instagram than I do on this blog. Make that 8 times larger. But I enjoy blogging. This site won’t be going down anytime soon. 

To celebrate my birthday last week (I’m now edging ever closer to 40) I asked my wife  (Cherry of Cherry’s Cakes) to make me an Instagram cake.  She excelled herself once again as you can see! Especially made with love…for her craft…and for me. Thank you sweetheart! Best cake ever!

Pistachio Ice Cream Nostalgia

Summer is officially over. It may not seem so in Brisbane (where the average is still in the high 20’s) but elsewhere in Australia the temperatures have started falling. As I write this post it’s actually 1C in sunny Canberra (lucky them!).

If you’re from one of the southern states you might think it’s a tad late to be posting about ice cream. But luckily I live in the ‘smart state’ of Queensland where we get to enjoy this icy treat any time of the year. Yes, even in the middle of winter.

Anyways, my dear wife (Cherry of Cherry’s Cakes) gave me an ice cream maker for our 14th anniversary. I immediately put it to good use always with the intention of writing a post about it. Well, 5 months and several tubs of ice cream later nada post. Unless you follow me (@thebeancounter) on Instagram there was no way you’ll know of my recent ice cream exploits. More on Instagram in a future post…I promise.

A caveat before you continue reading, making your own ice cream can be much more expensive than buying straight off the supermarket freezer..and it is very addictive. Procuring the essential ingredients without the benefit of economies of scale can be costly. But knowing exactly what goes in your ice cream makes it absolutely worth it. And it is addictive because it’s easy. It doesn’t take a genius..really.

I’ve always wanted to make my own pistachio ice cream. Not just for the challenge but more so for the nostalgia this particular flavour brings. Back in the days before Super Malls the Quiapo district of Manila was the place to be. There I go to Coney Island Ice Cream (American name but apparently 100% Filipino) to get my fill of this curious green coloured treat. Those carefree days...when my biggest worry was getting more of the ice cream in my mouth and less on my clothes.

Apparently, to create the ‘best’ possible pistachio ice cream one must source a particular pistachio paste from Bronte, Italy. In this day and age of online shopping I did not see that as a hurdle. Anything can be delivered downunder…or so I thought. I'm not sure if it's Australia's ‘strict to the point of ridiculousness’ quarantine rules that caused this but I could not get Bronte pistachios anywhere near my brand spanking new ice cream maker.

The next best thing was to make my own paste... I couldn’t be bothered.

I ditched the 'best' idea and looked for a simpler recipe. I went back to Cusinart’s recipe booklet. What I found didn’t excite me but I gave it a go… And much to my surprise the result was pretty impressive. I made some slight modifications to simplify it further and make sure I do not waste my ingredients and this is what I’m sharing with you below. By the way, you need an ice cream machine that can hold 2 litres. Read and follow your machine's manual. If you have a smaller version please adjust the measurements accordingly.

Pistachio Ice Cream

1 cup full cream milk chilled

1 ¼ cup caster sugar

2 x 300ml Thickened Cream

1 x 300ml Double Cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon almond extract

1 ½ cups roughly chopped pistachios

1. In a bowl, combine the milk and the caster sugar until the sugar is fully dissolved.

2. Stir in the thickened cream, the double cream, vanilla and almond extracts.

3. Turn the machine own; pour the mixture into the freezer bowl and let it mix until thickened, about 20-25 minutes. Add the chopped pistachios in the last 5 minutes of churning.

4. The ice cream will have a soft, creamy texture. If you prefer a firmer consistency transfer the ice cream to an air tight container and place in the freezer for at least 4 hours.

Kawaii Faces - White Chocolate Mud Cake

I have not stopped cooking. Neither have I ceased taking photographs. It’s just that, apart from my wife’s cakes, I find nothing inspiring with my recent kitchen exploits. Due to my work commitments I actually have not been cooking anything new and exciting. They’re still tasty meals but nothing extraordinary.

So please forgive me as this is another cake post. But for your benefit I’ll include my wife’s White Chocolate Mud Cake recipe at the end. I cannot emphasise how scrumptious it is. Those who have tasted it can attest to that. I should start putting testimonials on her page (Cherry’s Cakes)…

One great thing about having kids is the fact that they keep me in touch with today’s pop culture. I might not like most of it (I’m already exhibiting signs of generation gap) but it is valuable to at least be aware of “what the kids are into.”

“Kawaii” is a Japanese word that literally translates to “cute.” It not only characterises Japanese pop culture but also their mainstream society as a whole. From clothing to cars, from entertainment to everyday kitchen items, even in people’s mannerisms ‘kawaii’ or cuteness features quite heavily. There is nothing in Japan that has not been infiltrated by ‘kawaii’.

While my son is very much into manga my girls, on the other hand, prefer all these ‘kawaii’ stuff. To be more specific, they have a thing for miniature versions of everyday food. I did not realise they are quite prolific on the internet. There are thousands of YouTube videos that you can watch on the subject.

So, When Eliana was asked what cake design she had in mind for her birthday the answer was pretty obvious. But with literally thousands (maybe even millions) to choose from the dilemma for us was, what sort of ‘kawaii” it was going to be. Hello Kitty has been done to death as with most ‘cute’ characters.

And then she showed us these ‘kawaii faces’. The faces represent various emotions a 9 year old girl would have gone through in her young life. They were perfect! There were at least 9 of them, just right for Eliana’s 9^th birthday.

As for the flavour of the cake it had to be Eliana’s favourite white chocolate. The mini cakes were also individually encased in white chocolate for added luxury and texture.

To add Eliana’s personal touch to her cake she made ‘kawaii’ food to complete the design. No need for us to for an apprentice. She’s got the drive and the passion to succeed her mom…

Among all my children you’re the one who has shown me how it is to have a child like faith. Thank you! I love you! Happy birthday!

As promised here’s the recipe.

White Chocolate Mud Cake

300g unsalted butter chopped

300g white chocolate

300g plain flour

150g self raising flour

400g caster sugar

3 eggs lightly beaten

1.5 teaspoons vanilla extract

270ml water

A pinch of salt

9 inch round tin

1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2. Grease and line the tin with baking paper.
3. Put the butter and the water in a pan over medium heat and stir until the butter has melted. Turn off the heat, then add the chocolate and stir until it has melted and is well mixed.
4. Sift the flours, the sugar, salt in a deep bowl and make a well in the centre.
5. Pour the chocolate mixture, egg and vanilla into the well then stir until well combined.
6. Pour into the cake tin. Bake for 1 hour and 40 minutes or until the cake is golden brown and a skewer comes out clean when poked into the middle of the cake.
7. Leave to cool completely in the tin.
8. Serve on its own, with fresh cream or white chocolate ganache.

Sampinit – Philippine Wild Raspberries

Sampinit in bilao

A caveat: There’s not a lot of literature written about sampinit. What I’m posting here is purely from personal experience, what I know, what I’ve seen and what I’ve tasted. Nothing extracted from a “tropical fruit” journal. Wikipedia did not help this time as well. This is all me, purely my thoughts.

P20 worth of Sampinit

When I first posted photos of sampinit on my Facebook page (yes, I have one) a lot of my Filipino friends were pleasantly surprised to know that such a fruit can be found in our native land. I was familiar with it but by no means was it common. It was and remains a rare summer treat. Not widely available and only for a short period of time. That partly explains it being on the pricey side. I used to pick them myself as I could not afford the going “market rate” back in the ‘80s.

Sampinit in bilao

It might be expensive compared to other tropical fruits but once you understand what it takes before they appear in some ale’s banana leaf lined bilao you’ll accept the price as fair if not cheap. I am not aware if attempts have been made to cultivate this precious jewel of the forest. From what I know nothing has changed in how sampinit is harvested. They are sporadically found in Laguna’s rainforest. Some brave souls needed to endure the sweltering summer heat to come up with a kilo of this much loved wild berries. The berry bush, by the way, is surrounded by sharp thorns adding to the tricky nature of collecting them.

Raspberries from the supermarket

Compared to the commercially available raspberries sampinit are a bit smaller and thereby more delicate. The flavour is very similar to the regular raspberry but it is more robustly astringent and tart. They are not genetically modified to become sweeter and plumper to suit the consumer. They have been left as nature intended. I think sampinit would be great in compotes, sauces, pastries and even cakes if you can get a hold of enough of them.

Raspberries from the supermarket

You can devour sampinit straight from the bush but some people prefer to add a bit of salt (yes, you read right, salt!) to bring out more of that berry goodness. They let it stand in the salt for a few minutes which then slowly releases the berry juices. It is a known way of eating sampinit in Laguna. You’ll notice a small jar of salt on the bilao in one of my photos.

They’re about P10 for a shot size glass filled to the brim. I think that amounts to barely 100g of the stuff. I’m kicking myself now for not buying more and made something out of them. On the next trip back home I promise myself not to miss the opportunity…whenever that may be.

My Very Own Angry Birds Cake

For those not in the know Angry Birds is an extremely popular game available on the iPhone (and other Apple “i” products plus other smart phones). As described on Wikipedia:

“In the game, players use a slingshot to launch birds at pigs stationed on or within various structures, with the intent of destroying all the pigs on the playfield. As players advance through the game, new birds appear, some with special abilities that can be activated by the player.”

It may not sound much but the game is highly addictive. It sure helps me while the time away as I wait for my bus, plane, train or any other sort of waiting I have to do. I guess it was an easy choice when I was asked me what cake I would like on my birthday.

I am not going to say a lot more except Thank You! (once again) to my lovely wife who laboured till the wee hours of the morning (no, not to give birth to our 5^th child) to produce this amazing cake. It’s made of two kinds of cake. The bigger layer is red velvet with white chocolate ganache. The mini cake on top is chocolate mud cake with dark chocolate ganache. I brought it to the office yesterday and was quickly gobbled up by my colleagues pigs, birds, rocks and all.

By the way, my dearest wife has her own blog now to showcase her cake designs. Do visit Cherry’s Cakes. And if you want her to create one for you please email me: enuguid@gmail.com.

Buchi/Sesame Balls

The Filipino diet is rice-centric. From entrees to desserts, rice in one form or another can be found. Did I say desserts? Especially in desserts… One classic Asian sweet is the sticky rice ball. The Japanese have their mochi. We Filipinos have our buchi.

Growing up I’ve enjoyed this in its purest form. No sesame seeds. No flavours to choose from. The buchi sold in our barrio was simply deep fried sticky rice with a sweet mung bean filling. The buchi might have started as a ball straight out of the pan. But by the time the vendor gets to our place it’s more like a flattened disc. I did not mind. It was still scrummy.

Buchi’s popularity in the Philippines reached new heights when it formed part of Chowking’s (a well-known Chinese fast-food chain in the Philippines) menu. They serve the more traditional Chinese version of sesame coated balls filled with lotus cream/paste. If memory serves me right I think they also have ube (purple yam) flavoured buchi.

I find making buchi almost effortless. The most difficult part is making perfectly round balls hence my buchis are more rustic looking.

The filling is almost optional. My kids prefer them sans the filling. The recipe below is for sweet mung bean. But if you prefer a quicker version use canned lotus seed paste found in most Asian stores.

This is best eaten hot served with your favourite tea.

Buchi/Sesame Seed Puffs

Sweet Mung Bean Paste Filling

1/2 cup softened mung bean

1/2 cup caster sugar

Dough

3 cups glutinous rice powder

2/3 cup caster sugar

1 cup water

Sesame seeds

Oil for deep frying

Filling:

1. Mix the softened mung bean and the sugar together.

Dough:

1. Mix all the ingredients together to make the dough.

2. Divide dough into 20 equal pieces. You can go smaller or larger if you prefer.

3. Flatten each piece of dough into a circle.

4. Place a portion of the filling in the centre. Gather the edges of the dough to enclose the filling.

5. Roll into a ball and coat the outside with sesame seeds.

6. Heat oil for deep frying (medium heat). Deep fry the balls for approximately 5 minutes or until golden brown.

7. Serve hot with your favourite tea.

The Cake Artiste

I am so proud of my dear wife I can’t help but post photos of her recent creations.

Cake Artiste is what she is.

See for yourselves.